Tips about Food & Beverage, PhotoPass and Resorts

When we've made our Disney Dining reservations, one thing that helps us to get to our restaurant on time -- I enter my reservation number and time of reservation into my phone. I set my alarm to go off to remind me at least an hour before the reservation. That way, I'm not late and I have plenty of time to get from the Magic Kingdom to Epcot, or wherever I am. - Judy Shock

Please remember to keep your patio doors locked and secure your valuables, even when staying in the relative safety of a Disney resort. An article in the Orlando Sentinel a few days ago reported that the Orange County Sheriff's Office recently arrested two suspects trying to enter a room at Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa through a French door. There have been more than 20 cases of electronics stolen at that resort and others near by since late December. According to the article, Disney has been working closely with law enforcement throughout the investigation and has put additional security patrols in place. Disney has also encouraged its housekeeping team to ensure patio doors are locked, and literature has been left in the rooms to remind guests to lock all doors and secure valuables. - Editor Deb Koma

Please remember to keep your patio doors locked and secure your valuables, even when staying in the relative safety of a Disney resort. An article in the Orlando Sentinel a few days ago reported that the Orange County Sheriff's Office recently arrested two suspects trying to enter a room at Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa through a French door. There have been more than 20 cases of electronics stolen at that resort and others near by since late December. According to the article, Disney has been working closely with law enforcement throughout the investigation and has put additional security patrols in place. Disney has also encouraged its housekeeping team to ensure patio doors are locked, and literature has been left in the rooms to remind guests to lock all doors and secure valuables. - Editor Deb Koma

I pack a travel French Press to ANY Walt Disney World resort hotel. The inability to get fresh-brewed coffee at WDW is frustrating to a coffee drinker like me! I only need one good cup in the morning for me and it makes my day. You can get a travel coffee press from online retailers for $20. It's only slightly bigger than a soda can and easily fits in a carry-on. Simply put the grounds in the bottom (you can buy Mickey coffee at the hotel), add hot water, wait 5-10 minutes, press, and pour a great cup of coffee!

EDITOR'S NOTE: If you don't want to bring your own, AllEars.Net maintains a page of places to get fresh-brewed coffee around the World: http://allears.net/din/coffee.htm

For anyone who has celiac disease or wheat allergies in general, Tony's Town Square was a treat. Two of my traveling party have celiac disease and the chefs were amazing. So many options for gluten-free, including pasta and special gluten-free, dairy-free meatballs. We all ate like royalty the entire trip and can't wait to go back. - Richelle H.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Just about every table service restaurant at Walt Disney World will try to accommodate guests with special dietary needs.

There is a new PhotoPass "magic" shot available. When you get in line to see Princess Tiana, the photographer (time permitting) will go through the line and take pictures of you with your hand out and the frog will magically appear in your hands. If there is no time before the princess arrives, just ask the park photographer closest to the princess area and they should be able to do the picture for you. - Sandi Lamborne

Epcot - We found that the Electric Umbrella restaurant at Epcot has free drink refills... not only for soft drinks but for apple juice as well, which worked out great for our little one. This is the only "quick service" restaurant we visited that didn't give us a juice box when we ordered her a kid's meal with juice. - Michelle P.

Epcot - We found that the Electric Umbrella restaurant at Epcot has free drink refills... not only for soft drinks but for apple juice as well, which worked out great for our little one. This is the only "quick service" restaurant we visited that didn't give us a juice box when we ordered her a kid's meal with juice. - Michelle P.

Even though Tables in Wonderland hasn't officially announced that the 20% discount would be available at La Hacienda de San Angel in Mexico, I asked our server anyway if they took the discount and they did. So be sure to let your server know if you have it! - Jeannine Wallace

EDITOR'S NOTE: The official word from the Tables In Wonderland people is that the discount is not valid at La Hacienda de San Angel. It never hurts to ask though.

Space Mountain now allows you to put your ride photo on a special Space Mountain Photopass card to download at home, for $14.95. It can not go on your regular Photopass card for free like at Test Track. - Jamie Hogan

Disney's PhotoPass now has the option to pull any photos from your Facebook account so you may add characters and special borders, etc., so you can have them on calendars, prints, cards, etc. This Facebook option is completely under the control of the guest, so it's not mandatory. Simply log into Disney's PhotoPass to see the Facebook link. - Erin B.

I really wanted to make a reservation for T-REX: A Prehistoric Family Adventure restaurant during our upcoming trip, but the Disney online reservation system was showing absolutely no availability for dinner. So, I looked up the phone number for the restaurant and called them directly. I told them I wanted anything they had for a certain night and they told me I could pick any time I wanted because all the times were available. The phone number I used was 407-828-TREX. Definitely give them a call if you're having trouble getting a reservation. - Whitney

We think one of the "hidden secrets" at Walt Disney World is The Wave restaurant at the Contemporary Resort. As a person with a variety of health problems, and always looking for the healthiest thing to eat, I found that this restaurant had the best and tastiest selection of healthy food anywhere. The multi-grain bread is out of this world, especially when used for the lunch Reuben. Not only that, but there are discounts for Disney Vacation Club members and no problems getting a table, especially for lunch. This is a great place for a break from the parks or just a special visit to the wonderful Contemporary Resort. - Helen Phelps

We had the free dining plan during our visit to the World in August (as did 90% of all guests, according to a cast member). Due to some poor planning and indecisiveness, we were unable to get any dining reservations during our stay. However, we did eat very well. We walked into every restaurant of our choice and waited less than 15 minutes! Only 30 minutes in Canada. The trick is that we planned our meals for either the opening time of the restaurant or 2 to 4 p.m. Plenty of tables are available at those times. - Joanne

On our most recent trip I received in my welcome packet a PhotoPass card for the trip. Every year we take advantage of this service, but this is the first time we had our card in advance. To make it easier to keep up with I took one of the Disney luggage tags we had received and slipped the card in there and attached the strap. This helped make it easier to handle since it was a little bit more substantial, with the strap I was able to loop it through our backpack, my belt loop or even wear it on my wrist for convenience. The PhotoPass photographers even commented on this being a smart idea, because we were easily able to identify our card from others and they could scan it just fine. - Kaycee from Atlanta